As a 10mm fan...

re 10 mm 1911's -- and .40 S&W Accessory /second bbl.

I have a Delta Elite -- 5 inch blued gun, series 80 {among a bunch of other 1911's}

the gun shoots reasonably well, and I decided to obtain a .40 S&W bbl. for it for several reasons --

full house 10 mm loads were beating up the gun {IMHO} -- and even loaded down to .40 S&W levels, 10 mm ammo {my reloads} required expensive 10 mm brass, which would split or be lost at the range after a few firings.

the .40 S&W conversion, to have a second cartridge for the D.E. was simple, with one hitch.

I obtained an Ed Brown bbl. -- 5 inch, non ramped, in .40 S&W, which came with bushing, link and pin -- the bbl. was a 'drop in', which did require minor fitting, and feeling that bbl. fitting was a bit beyond me, I sent the D.E. and the bbl. to Ed Brown for fitting -- glad I did, and the cost was very reasonable {I am guessing it was approx $25 plus shipping about 10 years ago}

although 10 mm mags can be used, there is a little too much free space for the somewhat shorter ctg., so I purchased a couple of .40 S&W mags by Mec-Gar. {nickeled, since the ammo likes the slick nickel surface}

I obtained 20 lb. and 22 lb. recoil springs from Wolff Gun Springs

then, with the new bbl., mags for the .40, and a lighter recoil spring all should have worked ok -- it did not -- the empties would ‘stove pipe’ jam just about every time on ejection

after thinking about what might be the problem and talking to everyone I could find to discuss this, I finally hit upon the idea that the shorter case might need an 'extended' ejector -- since 5 inch 1911's mfg'd by Colt usually have a 'laid back', or a flat ejector -- both in .45 and in 10 mm. {the 10 mm ejector was flat, with no extension}

I obtained and easily installed an extended ejector for the D.E. -- all worked perfectly now, and when the 10 mm bbl. is in place, the 10 mm cases eject with just a little more force -- with no problems, also.

since I reload, obtaining once fired .40 S&W brass is MUCH more reasonable than finding 10 mm brass, which is almost never available in once fired condition -- I have had to purchase all of my 10 mm cases new from Starline brass -- whereas the .40 S&W brass, in once fired condition, is widely available, and costs 2 or 3 cents each when buying quantities of 1,000 to 5,000

I use 20 and 22 lb. recoil springs depending on the power level of the .40 S&W load I am firing -- my 10 mm ammo gets a 22 or 24 lb recoil spring

I have found that tungsten recoil rods and guide rod plugs in tungsten attenuate recoil and reduce muzzle flip enough for me to spend the extra $$$ for them {obviously not a fun thing to do to a carry pistol, as they add about 3 or 4 ounces of weight}

the Ed Brown bbl. now in my D.E. is a tack driver – but only when fired from a sand bag / seated rest, as I cannot hold anywhere near as good as that gun can shoot, and with each additional year my groups get a little bigger, as my eyes see less well.

the gun shot so well, I sent the slide out for Novak sights to be installed, using a gold bead in front and plain black in the rear, although I am about to swap out the rear for an adjustable sight which will go into the Novak dovetail cut.

last, the easy installation of a small plate for a series 80 to series 70 conversion, took away about 1/4 lb. from the trigger pull -- the plate is approx. $ 5 from 'TJ's Custom', or the same may be obtained from Brownells, -- it replaces the 2 series 80 levers in the grip frame -- {when removing those levers, something MUST be added back, since they affect the position of the sear, and hold it in place} -- this then permitted the removal of the series 80 plunger and spring from the slide. Now series 70 extractors and firing pins can be used, as can the same items in series 80 versions.

Don

Jack, I do like the 10 mm and now the pistol can handle both cartridges --

I have found that reloads in 10 mm to full pressure batter the gun and me, and eat up brass at a terriffic pace. -- as a cartridge to carry, I love the 10 mm -- and carry it many nights, where the extra weight of a 1911 does not matter too much -- that occurs every night when my lady wants to take her tiny poodle out for a stroll before bed, at midnight -- I m concerned about her and the dog, so I walk along with the D.E. 10 mm holstered -- I am thankful for living in a state where I may do that legally -- Florida. My carry ammo is Magsafe mostly, and Glaser -- since there are other homes around, and something like the usually JHP would penetrate a front wall and possibly harm an innocent person.

I just need to change the barrels, and usually the recoil spring and magazine, to switch between calibers -- it takes about 2 minutes, if I do it casually, 1 minute if in a hurry

I would buy another 1911 in 10 mm ... and have been looking at the very few 10's from other mfgr's -- and would like to have one with a ramped bbl., and a forged frame -- both to better withstand the 10 mm ctg.


Don

like i said earlier i love my colt 10mms so much i have 4.

i'd purchase 2 more if they started taking orders today,but truthfully i hope they never do as i paid a premium for the delta gold cups and if they resurect they will fall in value.

if i was ordering a 10mm tonight i'd get a fusion, if i wanted the best out there right now.(semi custom)
a dw rz for a factory 1911 cant be beat for a production gun.
a glock if i needed more than 8 rounds(they hold 15 or more)
- the smith 1006's hold 9 and have never let me down(but are only availible used)


just a note i have all these pistols except the fusion and sent payment bob's way today for one to check it out.(a little christmas present to myself):biggrin:

as for a 40 conversion my next 10mm will have on just to allow me to buy factory ammo where 10mm isent availible.as it is not always plentyful in my travels.